Did you know that, on average, 21.9% of High School students smoke? Get the facts to support being tobacco free.

• Smoking-related diseases claim an estimated 438,000 American lives each year. 
• 90% of all adult smokers started when they were kids, and each day, more than 4,400 kids become regular smokers.
• For every 8 smokers that die of a smoking related illness, they take one nonsmoker with them.

• Cigarette smoke contains over 4,800 chemicals, 69 of which are known to cause cancer. Smoking is directly responsible for approximately 90% of lung cancer deaths and approximately 80-90% of COPD (emphysema and chronic bronchitis).
• People who smoke a pack a day, die on average 7 years earlier than people who have never smoked. 
• It is estimated that approximately 4.5 million adolescents in the United States smoke.
• Every year, second-hand smoke is responsible for 35,000-40,000 deaths from heart disease and 3,000 deaths from lung cancer in people who do not smoke.
• Tobacco kills 5.4 million people a year– an average of one person every six seconds– and accounts for one in ten adult deaths worldwide.
• 100 million deaths were caused by tobacco in the 20th century.  If current trends continue, there will be up to one billion deaths in the 21st century.
• Smokers earn up to 10% less than non-smokers.
• Smoking reduces blood flow to your hands and feet.
• Smoking can decrease your life expectancy by as much as 25 years.
• Cigarette butts can take up to 15 years to decompose.
• Pets are just as susceptible to second-hand smoke as humans are.
• Teens who smoke don't do as well in schools as non-smokers.
• Smokers tend to gain more weight in the midsection.
• A person who uses eight to ten dips or chews a day receives the same amount of nicotine as a heavy smoker who smokes 30 to 40 cigarettes a day.
• An estimated 8% of High School students are current smokeless tobacco users.  An estimated 3% of middle school students are current smokeless tobacco users.